Cargo volumes at Al Maktoum International at Dubai World Central continued to rise sharply in the first three months of 2015, propelling the airport into the world’s 20 busiest international cargo hubs for the first time*.

Freight volumes surged 177.3 per cent in the first quarter of 2015 to 213,006 tonnes, up from the 76,816 tonnes achieved in the same period last year. The growth was driven by Dubai Airports’ strategic decision to relocate all dedicated freighters from Dubai International to Al Maktoum International in May last year.

The rapid growth in cargo volumes was recognised at the recent Air Cargo News Awards in London where Al Maktoum International was named as the best cargo airport with volumes under 1 million tonnes.

Passenger traffic also continued to grow steadily with 143,374 passengers passing through the airport in the first three months of this year, up 40.4 per cent from the 102,137 passengers recorded in the first quarter for 2014.

The increase in passenger and cargo activity at the airport also boosted aircraft movements, which rose to 10,699 movements in the first quarter of 2015, increasing 7.1 per cent from the 9,965 movements achieved in the same period last year.

“To emerge as one of the top 20 busiest international cargo airports is a tremendous vote of confidence in Al Maktoum International and demonstrates the growing importance of the airport as a vital hub between east and west,” said Paul Griffiths, CEO of Dubai Airports. “Similarly we expect the airport to establish itself as a vital gateway to the Middle East and expect the growth in passengers to be sustained over the coming years.”